Ask Alys: your gardening questions answered

Are orange, lemon and grapefruit skins good for compost or is it better to add them to the household waste? Worms don't like citrus peel, so you shouldn't put too much of it in a worm bin (the worms will just find the nearest exit and migrate elsewhere, usually under your pots, if you do). A good compost heap, on the other hand, has plenty of other helpers who do like citrus and will happily break down your peelings. Basically, if it rots down, it can be made into compost as long as you remember the golden rule: everything in layers and not too much of one thing. Mix up your citrus peel with grass clippings and weeds, make sure the heap doesn't dry out and has enough air, and it will turn into good compost. You could use grapefruit halves to catch slugs first. Slugs love to spend the daytime in the warm dome of an empty grapefruit. Place them cut side down about the garden and then swoop in early evening, collect them up and do whatever you must to get rid of the slugs. Once the grapefruit halves start turning to mush, add them to the heap. • Got a question for Alys? Email [email protected]